Monday 1 July 2013

ACCA Skills Module Mode Activated

So I’m now about three weeks into class for  the skills module of the ACCA Qualification. In case you don’t know, I’m studying for the ACCA qualification besides my interest in Web Development. Pity henceforth a greater proportion of my time is now focused on work  towards that.It's worth it in the long run i must admit.

That is not to say I’ve lost interest in coding, matter of fact I’ve come to love both accounting and  coding, only now I’ve got to prioritize and ACCA comes first. From time to time I’ll have coding as a side dish though until I’ve cleared my next six papers.

Assessment at the skills module(Part 2) is nothing compared to the knowledge module(Part 1). There’s a lot of work involved here, the questions are longer and just a look at the bulky course materials can make you decided on the spot whether to continue or not that is if you lack that needed determination.

At the skills level it is very important you get the topics and concepts from the very beginning and your perception or mindset about this level will have a telling effects on how you are able to achieve that.

One thing you should not be thinking about is how difficult it might be for you to understand and solve questions on every topic in the study guides within the time constraints just by looking at the bulkiness of course materials for even a single paper and don’t be swayed by other people’s negative perceptions and comments about the ACCA program.

Listening to quitters will give you reason to quit too. Instead align yourself with others who are ahead of you as well as those whose have successfully completed the program. That way you’ll  get loads of motivation,inspiration and encouragement

Forming and developing a positive mind set and perception is one of the things I’ve learnt to do even at this early stage.Once I got that sorted out, the volume of text didn’t intimidate me any longer.I’ll try not to miss any class, I’ll make a lot of time for studying and solving questions and I’m holding fast with confident expectation for the future.Simply put, I’ll do my part with the faith that God will fulfill HIS part too. There’s no question about that.

With God all things are possible.


Sunday 2 June 2013

Teaching and Learning of French in Ghana

French as a foreign language has been taught in Ghanaian schools as far back as I can remember and from interactions with the older generation, teaching and learning of the language started long before my generation was even birth. 
  
French is a compulsory subject in private and public schools from the primary to junior high level and at the High school level it is an elective. At the tertiary level, French is again mandatory for all undergraduates in some select private universities. Then again it is an elective for some programs in some public universities or can be studied as a major.
  
The adoption of French by Ghana, a former British colony as the official foreign language in our educational system is by virtue of the fact that Ghana shares borders with three French speaking countries and also because French is the official language of a greater number of countries within the West African sub region in which Ghana belongs. Besides English, French is also an official language of all United Nations agencies and a large number of international organizations.

Within the sub region, there are eight French speaking countries, five English speaking, Ghana included, one Arabic and two Portuguese. It is interesting to note that Ghana's closest neighbors are French speaking which explains the importance of French to the development of our economy as well as regional integration.

All these notwithstanding, the French language has not enjoyed widespread interest among we Ghanians in my opinion. Take the average school pupil for instance. After having studied French for about six or so years can only manage maybe 

BONJOUR, CAVA? Or   
JE M'APPELLE... 
meaning ...my name is...
Come to think of writing a full page essay.

You will notice that most Ghanaian can speak and understand at least one local language in addition to their mother tongue and the maximum could be three or even more. Some of these local languages are taught as part of the school curriculum but mostly we acquire the skills and mastery of these other local languages as we grow and interact amongst ourselves.  
How else do you think the average Ghanaian could have been able to speak more than one local language and still struggle with French after being taught formally for years?

The solution to this is twofold. Students have a part to play as well as the educational authorities which includes French teachers, schools and education administrators. One’s ability to grasp and gain mastery of spoken and written French will depend on
  • What motivates them
  • The environment in which they are exposed to
  • Influences
  • What their aspirations are
  • Sheer determination   
The study of French shouldn’t end in the classroom. By continuously interacting with people who are already good in the language, or are native speakers, you stand a greater chance at success.

This is where the authorities come in.By making available exchange opportunities for instance at the early stages of studying French students perspectives are shaped and they are able to put theory into practice.

Fortunately, English is not an isolated language. Rather, it is linked to French, Latin and other European languages by descent or influence. It also absorbed foreign vocabulary in its earlier years; over 50 per cent of English words stem from Latin or French. With common alphabets, structure, and vocabulary, foreign languages like French can be relatively easy for English speakers to learn.

At the end of the day Determination is a key motivator.

Friday 17 May 2013

My First Functional Website Project.

A few months back i suggested to a friend who's more like the brother the need for him to put his electrical engineering,solar power installation and air conditioner servicing business on the internet.He agreed and asked if i was capable of setting it up and i responded yes.

Back then i had just began familiarizing myself with blogging platforms Blogger and WordPress.I  wasn't much of an HTML or CSS expert either.These two languages are the basics of web development and i had just started learning them and was making headway.

Then late last month we had a final discussion about the website and i set out to come up with something.Based on resources available in terms of budget and my level of expertise i chose Google's Africa Get Your Business Online free hosting platform.

With Africa Get Your Business Online,i had at my disposal the platform and tools  needed to set up a basic yet functional website with access to a dashboard for analytics,monitoring traffic sources among others.

I was really excited working on this especially as i saw my HTML codes come alive when i published my work.I didn't use CSS in this project though.

Aside from the website,i've been tasked with the responsibility of managing his online presence and drive business growth through social media.Wow!How exciting.

The website is live now and i'm coming up with strategies on how to use social media to generate more clients and improve overall performance,growth and increase revenue in the long run.

I'm beginning to learn a lot already and it's about to get even more fun and exciting 

Thursday 28 March 2013

My First Blog! or Maybe not!

Welcome to my weblog.I wouldn't  go into the nitty gritty about how it started for me.At least not now.What i can say is blogging offers me the opportunity to express my thought and opinions as well as share with the world in a whole new way.

Blogging broadens my perspective of happenings and the world around me.Blogging is an extension of your English composition or creative writing class so to speak.

Blogging is so many things and I'm here to give it my best shot.